


Chapter 33.5

by destroza



Series: Spierfeld week [3]
Category: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli
Genre: Canon - Book, M/M, Spierfeld Week, but nothing too explicit, some talk about boners
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-12
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2019-04-22 01:40:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14297964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/destroza/pseuds/destroza
Summary: Simon and Bram go on an adventure after ditching school to eat milk and oreos in the grocery store parking lot.





	Chapter 33.5

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for Day 3 of Spierfeld Week. The challenge was to expand a scene that happens in canon, so I decided to pick the scene from Chapter 33 where Bram and Simon go off campus for lunch to eat Oreos. Some of the dialogue comes directly from the book. If you didn't read the book, there's a scene where (SPOILER ALERT!) Abby, Nick, and Simon go to Midtown and end up at this queer friendly restaurant called Webster's. It's really a funny part of the book, so if you haven't read it yet, I suggest you go and get the book right meow. This is unbeta'd, totally rushed, and might not make the most sense because I don't really know the geography of Georgia and don't think I ever will, but I tried and liked how it came out for the most part. So enjoy.

 

_R u coming to lunch?_  
  
_Um, where r u?_

_Bram’s gone too. How strange ;)_  
  


It sounded like a good idea at the time. It wasn’t like anyone was questioning why we were leaving campus during lunch even though only the seniors got the privilege to do so. Abby figured it out once she realized that neither Bram nor I had been present at lunch, so if anyone questioned it, I figured she would cover for us. Besides, he tempted me with Oreos. How could I say no to a hot guy with Oreos? That would be like telling a fat kid not to eat cake. In this case I’m the fat kid.

“Twenty-seven minutes until the end of lunch.” He says to me as I finish reading Abby's texts and polish off what I believe to be my third cup of miniature Oreos and milk.

“Do we have to go back?” I mutter. To be honest, I was falling into a cookie coma and I could pass out any moment from how full I was. The rain outside was coming down even harder and I really wasn’t in the mood to get wet.

Bram twists the ignition of his car. “Well we’re already off campus. What’s the worst that could happen?” He looks at me, grinning.

“I don’t know. I’m still grounded, you know.”  
  
“I don’t think anyone would notice that we left.”

True, the only class I had left after lunch was theater and Ms. Albright had been kind of my guardian angel after I’d been forced out of the closet. I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t say anything when she noticed I was missing and I shared this class with Abby. She would cover for me, I’m sure. I was more worried about Bram, though. I never took him as the type to break the rules.

“Well…” I perk up and Bram looks hopeful. I eventually cave in. “Okay, so where to captain?”

Bram hands me his iPod and I connect it to the stereo of his car with the AUX cord. It takes me a while to pick a song, but I suddenly stumble across a playlist that looks like it has my name on it. Like a playlist that’s literally dedicated to me. I’m not surprised that the first song is an Elliott Smith song, but I couldn’t help but glare at him when _Boom Boom Pow_ by The Blackeyed Peas started playing after _Waltz #2_ ended. I kinda regret telling him that story of how I embarrassed myself thinking that I had more rhythm than the average white boy.

“Sorry Simon, I couldn’t help myself.” Bram giggles. He’s so cute when he’s a giddy mess, so he’s instantly forgiven.

“So where are we going?”  
  
“I don’t know, just taking a drive.” He has one hand on the steering wheel while his free hand is interlaced with mine. We hum along to the songs that are playing on the radio, but I’m not really paying attention to the music. I’m too busy staring at Bram’s soft brown eyes. I think he could tell that I was staring at him, because he turns and smiles which causes my heart to skip a beat and tints my entire face with a pink hue. I have no idea how I’m going to survive dating Bram if all it takes is a smile to get me this flustered.  
  
The rain is coming down harder now. I hate summer rain. It makes everything so hot and sticky. I don’t know how long we’ve been driving now, but I suddenly feel my phone vibrating in my pocket.

 

 _Dude, where’d u guys go?_ It was a text from Abby.

 

I really wasn’t sure where we were. I was too distracted staring at Bram to pay attention to our surroundings. All I know is that we’re nowhere near Shady Creek anymore. Bram takes the next freeway exit, but I still have no idea where we are.

 _Adventuring_ I respond to Abby’s text. We exchange a few more text messages. I forgot that we had theater rehearsals later that day, so Abby and I come up with a story that I had to leave school early because I had diarrhea so that Ms. Albright wouldn’t question why I missed class and rehearsals. Lame, I know, but no one ever questions diarrhea. Luckily soccer season was done and Bram didn’t have any more practices to attend. It was his mom we had to worry about.

“Hey.” I turn to him.

“Hey,” he says back.

“Are you sure this is okay?”

He nods, but doesn’t say much.

“Bram?”

I could feel the car slowing down and he pulls over into the closest parking lot. It was attached to an office supply store.

“Um, Simon?” Bram’s voice is a little shaky.

I can’t help but feel a little nervous.

“I ran out of gas.” 

\- - -

I have 54% of battery life left on my phone, so I figure that if I’m a little conservative about how I use it, it’ll last us until we figure out where we are and how to get home. We sit in the car for a while as Bram continues to twist the key in the ignition. The engine fires up but immediately dies out again. It looks like we’re stranded.

I step out of the car and look around the parking lot. There’s no signs that says we can’t leave the car there, but I have no idea where the nearest gas station is. If we could put in a couple dollars worth we could get enough gas to get us back in the direction of home. The rain is letting up a little, but it’s still surprisingly dark for it only being 4:30pm. It’ll probably end up raining again.

“I’m so sorry, Simon.” Bram hits his face against the steering wheel.

“Don’t be, it was my fault for even suggesting we not go back to school in the first place.” I give his hand a slight squeeze.

“Should we… Should we call someone?” He looks at me. I look at my phone again. I have two bars of reception. I think about calling my mom, but then I remember that I’m grounded. If she learns about me leaving campus during lunch and then ditching school all together, my grounding would extend to a life sentence.

“No, let’s not get our friends involved.” I say. I could call Abby as I suddenly remember that she knows about our adventure. But play rehearsals wouldn’t be getting out til eight pm, so I don’t think she’d get my message in time. I also think about calling Leah, but I don’t even know if we’re on speaking terms yet. I’m still a little scared of her, to be honest. And if I tell Nick, he might accidentally let it slip to my mom that I’ve gone missing. “Maybe your mom could help us out?”

Bram laughs nervously. “About that…”

Uh oh. More bad news.

“Remember how my mom’s an epidemiologist? Well, she’s actually in Florida right now for a conference. She won’t be back home until Monday. That’s why I figured it’d be okay to go on an adventure. It’s apparent that I can’t be trusted with too much freedom.” He smiles, but I know he’s screaming on the inside.

“Great,” I sigh and lean back in the car chair. “What are we gonna do?”

“Are you mad at me?” Bram frowns. I don’t like him looking sad.

I shake my head. “Of course not.” I’m more terrified than anything, but this will make a funny story later for our kids. Getting lost on what’s technically our first date. Hm, having kids with Bram. My mind begins to go off on a tangent. Bram would be such an amazing dad. Focus, Simon, Focus.

Bram starts to fidget with the key in the ignition again and the car sparks back to life. He’s able to keep the car going and we pull out of the parking lot. We drive down the main road and luckily for us the road is mostly a downhill drive. He throws the car into neutral and we roll until we eventually hit a gas station. Bram looks a little less tense now. He parks his car in front of the first available fuel dispenser.

“How much cash do you have on you right now?” He asks as he opens his wallet. “I spent most of my money on the milk and cookies we had during lunch.” He pulls out two single dollars and a fist full of dimes and pennies.

I forage through my wallet and come up with $5.72 exactly. I have a debit card, but my mom still monitors my payment activity. I don’t want her to question a charge in another city, especially when the name of the convenience store connected to this gas station is called _Cheap Ass Cigarettes_. I silently curse myself for my iced coffee addiction. The habit is getting a little expensive. I willingly hand the money over to Bram and he calculates that we have enough cash to fill his car up to at least a quarter tank. He figures that it should be enough to get us back home since he was slightly below a quarter when we left school.

As Bram heads inside to pay the cashier, I try and figure out where we are. It dawns on me that we’ve managed to reach Midtown. I remain in the front seat as Bram begins to fill up his tank with gas. It’s not long before he gets back into his car.

“So I’ve figured out where we are.” I pull out my phone. My mom hasn’t called or texted me yet, then again, I’m supposed to still be at school for play rehearsals, but my time is running short. There’s about forty-five minutes left until I should be home.

“Where?” Bram asks. When he turns the car back on, the needle on his gas gauge barely reaches the quarter tank hash mark on the dashboard.

“Midtown. I came here a few weeks ago with Abby and Nick. There’s this place nearby on Juniper called Webster’s. There might be someone there who can help us.”

It’s about a fifteen-minute drive from the gas station. I clumsily help navigate through the city. Abby made it look so effortless the time she drove, but we eventually reach our destination. Luckily the rain has subsided so we quickly get out of the car and make our way into the colorful restaurant.

 ---

Bram takes one look at the restaurant and he has this look of confusion and wonder. “So this is a restaurant?” He asks as he takes in the site of the large patio covered in Christmas lights.

“To be honest, I’m not really sure myself. Abby said it’s a restaurant, but you’ll see once we get inside.”

As we make our way through the restaurant, I can’t help but notice that Bram is much more calm than I was when I came here with Abby and Nick. I scan through the restaurant, gazing past the pierced hipsters with skinny jeans (who I may add, still look as cute and overwhelming as my first visit) until my eyes fall on a group of college kids drinking around a table in the back. I immediately spot Peter (it’s hard to miss his blond hair and bright polo shirt), I won’t lie when I say I’m excited to see him, but I’m careful not to seem too eager because I notice Bram shift a little uncomfortably as he makes his way towards us from his table.

“Well if it isn’t Simple Simon,” He teases. “And he brought a friend!” I was relieved that he remembered my name.

Bram shifts closer to me and wraps his arm around my waist. I can’t help but blush. I never took Bram as the jealous type. “I’m his boyfriend.” He says. “My name is Bram.” I'd have to explain to Bram later that even if I did find Peter cute, he'd be thrown right in jail if he even considered doing anything with me. 

“Niiiice,” Peter points at Bram with finger guns and laughs. He’s clearly had a few drinks already. “So what brings you here, Simple Simon and Bram?” He asks.

I look at the clock. Play rehearsals are almost over and I’m half expecting a phone call from my mom any moment, so I have to make it quick. “Well, you see, we ditched school today and decided to go on an adventure. We drove a little further than we had expected and ended up here. We have no money and we’re not sure whether or not we’ll have enough gas to last us the ride home.” I explain. And as if on cue, my phone starts ringing.

When I look at my phone, I’m actually surprised to see that it’s a text from Abby.

 

_Dude, where r u now?_

I frantically begin to text her back. _Webster’s. HELP._

_What the hell r u doing all the way at Webster’s?_

_R u still with Bram?_

Peter is swaying as he stands, staring at us. He’s a little more than tipsy, but not quite drunk.

   
_  
Yes I’m still with Bram_

_It’s a long story. I’ll tell u later. But I might need ur help._

  
  
As I click send, my phone begins to ring again and I see my mom’s number show up on the screen. I try my best to compose myself and answer.

“Hello?”

“Simon, where are you?” She asks.

“I had to drop Abby off at home because her car is being fixed.” I manage to tell her without stuttering. I hope she can’t tell that I’m lying. Luckily the background noise isn’t too loud.

“You know you’re still grounded right? And I still expect you to be home by curfew.” She says sternly.

“I know and I’m sorry for not calling earlier.” Here it goes. “But I was actually wondering if I could stay at Abby’s tonight. I don’t want to fall asleep on the ride home.”

She’s silent. I feel like I’ve been caught. I’m ready for her to lecture me, but she sounds surprisingly calm. “Okay, Simon. Just for one night.” I’m lucky my mom is anal about driver safety. “But I’m extending your grounding sentence by one more day. I’m glad that you’re looking out for your friends and being responsible.” She lays down a few more rules and takes a little extra time to reiterate that I have to be home in the morning by eight, which seems fair enough considering the situation. I can’t help but feel a little guilty for being called responsible even though I was straight up lying to her face.

I hang up the phone and sigh in relief. “Okay, so we have til eight AM tomorrow morning to figure out what we’re going to do.” I look at Bram then back over at Peter. He seemed to have sobered up slightly during the time I was on the phone with my mom.

“If you guys are looking for a place to stay, my apartment has a pull out couch that you can use for the night. My roommates won’t be home til after day break, so as long as you’re out by the time they come back, you’re more than welcome to use it.” I give him my phone number and he texts me his address. It isn’t too far away when he explains to us how to get there from the restaurant. He hands me a spare key to get into his apartment and lets us know that there’s a guest-parking stall that we can use when we get there. I quickly send Abby a text to let her know what’s going on, and I’m glad that she’s willing to follow along with the plan just in case my mom decides to give her a call.  
  
\- - -

The drive to Peter’s apartment doesn’t take long and before we know it, we’re walking through the front door of his unit. It’s surprisingly neat for a place belonging to three bachelors. I set the key down on his kitchen counter, which leads to a hallway to the living room where I immediately spot the fold out couch. My phone vibrates with a text message from Peter.  
  
_Extra sheets, blankets, and towels are in the bathroom closet. Feel free to use the shower, but stay out of the fridge. The beer is off limits._

I walk to the bathroom to locate the bed sheets while Bram sets up the fold out bed. I can’t help but feel a little nervous. I realize that I’m spending the night with my boyfriend even though we just started dating.

“Here’s the sheet,” I walk out to the living room and help Bram pull the sheet over the mattress. I locate a few pillows before heading back to the bathroom closet to grab a blanket. When I return to the living room, I notice Bram is sitting on the mattress and he looks a little nervous. I take a spot next to him and hold his hand. “You okay?”

He nods. “So we’re sharing a bed.” He croaks out.

“Yeah, it looks like it.”

We’re silent for a moment. “We’re not going to… You know?” He’s blushing and he’s the most adorable thing in the world when he’s flustered. I immediately understand that he thinks that we’re going to be having sex. Honestly, even though we’ve shared some raunchy emails as Jacques and Blue, it’s a topic I wanted to avoid until later in our relationship. For heavens sake, we just figured out how to kiss each other properly without our noses bumping or our teeth clacking against each other.

“No, I’m not ready for that.” There’s this look of relief that washes over Bram’s face as I look at him. “Are you disappointed that I’m not ready?”

Bram shakes his head. “Relieved, actually. I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page.”

A part of me really wanted to take advantage of the alone time that I’m sure we’re rarely going to get once we get home, but I didn’t want our first time together to be on a fold out mattress in an acquaintance’s apartment living room. Bram stands from the bed and grabs one of the towels that I laid out for us.

“Do you mind if I shower first?” He asks. I nod and he heads to the bathroom. I plop on the mattress and wait for him to finish. A few minutes later, he’s back. His hair is still damp and he’s wearing nothing but his boxers. I can’t help but stare at his beautifully toned body as he folds the clothes he had been wearing and sets it to the side. His skin is so perfectly smooth. That’s the beauty of melanin. I end up taking a cold shower once it’s my turn to bathe.

I’m a little more bashful when it comes to showing off my body. My skin is so pale that it’s almost translucent, so I opt to keep my shirt on. I fold up my jeans and set them next to where Bram placed his clothes and join him back on the mattress. He’s under the blanket and looks so adorably sleepy. His eyes are droopy and I can tell he’s fighting fatigue. I crawl under the blanket with him and snuggle up as close as I can. His bare skin touching mine sends a shiver up my spine. I can feel myself getting aroused, so to keep the beast at bay, I begin to imagine gross things like grandma in a thong, but the real boner killer is when I remembered Bram telling me about his mom’s talks about condoms every time including oral. That is definitely a conversation I’m glad my parents never had with me.

“I have to remember to properly thank Draco Malfoy later.” I chuckle when Bram turns to face me. Our bodies had become a messy tangle of limbs. The mattress is a little hard, but snuggling with Bram was making it much more bearable.

“His name’s Peter,” I kiss his nose. “But I find it funny that you also thought he looked like Draco.”

Bram grins, his eyes are getting heavier as we lay in the darkness of the living room.

“Do you regret this adventure?” He asks me.  
  
I shake my head. “No, because it’s giving me all of this alone time with you.”

Our lips lock, but it doesn’t arouse me this time. It just makes me feel loved and wanted. Our breathing syncs and I can tell we’re both getting closer to falling asleep. I let Bram fall asleep before I do so that I can get a closer look at his beautiful face. I memorize every birthmark, every dot, and every scar. I kiss him once more and it’s not long until I finally allow the exhaustion to completely take over my body. 

\- - -  
  
As promised, we’re out of Peter’s apartment by six AM. We fold up the sheets and toss them into a laundry bin that we were told to use. Bram’s still a little sleepy, but we hop into his car and begin the drive home. It’s a little easier getting back since I remember the roads now. I realized that when we arrived in Midtown, Bram had just taken a weird turn. I used to be impressed with Abby’s navigational skills, but I guess it’s actually not that hard once you realize where you’re going.

Out of guilt, I offer to fill his tank up at the local gas station before he brings me back to school so that I can get my car. He refuses at first, but I threaten him that I won’t kiss him again until he says yes. We eventually come to a compromise where I fill his tank up half way. I’m relieved because I really don’t think I would last being unable to kiss my boyfriend. We kiss a few times before parting ways at school and before I know it, I’m back home with forty-five minutes to spare. My family is in the kitchen eating breakfast. My mom smiles at me, but it’s not a happy smile. I have a feeling she knows that I lied to her, so I’m half expecting another lecture later. But I figure that the time that I got to spend with Bram makes it all worth it.

 

**Author's Note:**

> And follow me on tumblr at [homosexualdisasturd](https://homosexualdisasturd.tumblr.com)


End file.
